Reflections on the World Japanese Garden Conference
The World Japanese Garden Conference I attended in Japan this past September was incredibly stimulating. Furthermore, meeting individuals involved in Japanese gardens across the United States, Mexico, China, and Japan is a valuable asset to me. The High Quality of Japanese Garden Creation and Maintenance Ueyakato Landscape in Kyoto is one of Japan’s top-tier landscape […]
The Greatness of Tree Shade
I’m heading back to Japan temporarily this month, and my only worry is the extreme heat. When I went back at the same time last year, I thought it was unbearably hot, but this year I hear it’s at a disaster level. It’s frightening. According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, Japan recorded the hottest summer […]
Woodlawn Cemetery: A Garden of Grand Mausoleums & Literary Legacies
Beginning with Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, there are several cemeteries in the United States that offer beautiful and peaceful landscapes. This past weekend, I visited one of them, Woodlawn Cemetery in New York. Established in 1863, this vast 400-acre cemetery feels like an exquisitely maintained garden. It also resembles a botanical garden, featuring many […]
Deep Mountains and secluded valleys on Japanese gardens
When I design Japanese gardens, the image of “deep mountains and secluded valleys” (深山幽谷 – shinzan-yūkoku) particularly serves as a basis for my ideas, especially when considering stone arrangements. This evokes the scenery of remote mountain recesses and deep ravines, far from human habitation. This is not unique to me; it’s a design principle seen […]
Landscape Design as a Tool for Disaster Prevention: Lessons from Japan
The recent wildfires in Los Angeles have sparked important conversations about how we can better prepare our communities for natural disasters. As a landscape designer with experience in Japan, I believe there are valuable lessons we can learn from their approach to fire safety through landscape design. In Japan, earthquakes are often followed by wildfires. […]
